Student Senate to vote on fee increase, bills

Bailey Taylor, Staff Reporter

The Student Senate will be voting on two proposed fee increases and several bills at their meeting 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Arcola-Tuscola room in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

The fee increase is for the MLK Union and for Student Health Services.

Student Body President Shirmeen Ahmad said the student senate will be discussing the fee increase since Lynnette Drake, the interim vice president for student affairs, wants feedback.

Ahmad said Drake wants to hear the student perspective before the proposed increase is taken to the Board of Trustees.

“I have heard different opinions from student senators about whether they agree with it or not,” Ahmad said. “But at the end of the day, when we send our recommendations, it is up to us to make sure we are acting on behalf of the student body and doing what is in the best interest of students.”

Ahmad said adding another fee could mean a lot to one student and maybe not as much to others.

She said it will be a good discussion tomorrow as they go over the positives and negatives of the fee increase and the repercussions of saying yes or no to it.

Most of the bills that are being voted on tomorrow are recommendations made by the Apportionment Board regarding the 2016-2017 budgets for Student Government, University Board and Campus Recreation Center.

Ahmad said this means the Student Senate gets to decide if they agree how the Apportionment Board split up the total amount or not.

Senators will have a period of discussion before voting on the bills.

The Student Senate will also vote on a resolution, which will take the form of a letter that will be sent to Springfield.

“This (letter) is something the Business Affairs committee wrote and we just want to keep doing what we can to let it be known that we will continue to fight,” Ahmad said.

Bailey Taylor can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected]